Monday, October 27, 2008

I saw a dentist last week for a regular check up. I'm used to having female dentists and the only male I've gone to before was a 60-year-old grumpy man. My new dentist (I changed clinic when we moved last year) is a gorgeous man in his 30's.

Have to say that having a gorgeous dentist is difficult! It was hard not staring at him when he leaned over to poke around in my mouth. My eyes wandered all over his face and when I realized, I got all embarrassed. Lying there with my mouth wide open and a ton of different appliances sticking out, didn't really make me feel charming either...

I had some bad stains on some of my teeth and he spent a lot of time battling them. (In the process he managed to repeatedly spray my face with water and cover my glasses with annoying drops of water...) When my appointment was over and he was summarizing what he'd done to me, he asked me if I was a smoker.

My instant reaction was to feel insulted. Me - a smoker? Never! The thought "Do I look like asmoker?" went through my head. I answered him truthfully and said that I wasn't, but that I drank a lot of tea.

When unlocking my bike outside the clinic, I started laughing at myself. What kind of a reaction was that? Being insulted when someone asks if you're a smoker... And then wondering if you look like a smoker...

I mean, what does a smoker look like? Or a non-smoker?

I started thinking about what people might be able to see when looking at me... Can someone passing me on the street see that I am

a big sister? a knitter? a cat lover? someone's girlfriend? an idealist? someone who likes to travel? good with languages? the biological daughter of an alcoholic? afraid of cows, horses, geese and swans? on the left side in politics? a geek when it comes to nice-looking combinations of numbers? a former runner? a creative person? a total airhead when it comes to recognizing different kinds of cars? Swedish? an atheist? a fan of Pet Shop Boys? totally disgusted by slugs, octopuses and leeches? a non-monarchist? right-handed? way too much of a thinker for my own good? a tea drinker? childfree by choice?